It was a record book season for two local hunting and fishing enthusiasts.
Jacqueline Cote and Cy Hallett have been recognized by the Alberta Fish and Game Association for their Lakeland harvest.
Using her lucky five of diamonds fishing lure, Jacqueline landed herself a 57-centimetre lake trout, the largest catch recorded in Alberta this year.
But that wasn’t the only good news for Jacqueline, she also received a trophy for her Cold Lake catch.
“I’m very happy,” expressed Jacqueline, 26.
According to Cote’s dad, Allain Cote, he had invited her to tag along with him on one of his fishing trips. It was during that afternoon on the lake that she had caught her winning trout.
“She goes to work everyday, but that day I kept her home to be my fishing partner,” Allain said. “She was supposed to be my fishing partner, but in the end, I was her partner.”
Hallett also had a successful season. He was awarded the Alberta Fish and Game Association’s largest white-fronted goose.
Using common tricks of the trade, Hallett managed to score a nine-pound five-ounce bird, the second largest ever recorded in Alberta, with the first coming in at 10-pounds even.
“I knew it was a pretty good bird. I entered one last year that was eight ounces, and a 14-year-old girl from Lalonde won with an eight-pound two-ounce bird,” Hallett explained. “In the past few years, it has really been around the eight pound mark that wins, so I weighed mine and I knew I had a shot.”
Although there are no cash prizes, for these locals it isn’t about the reward.
“You get a plaque and bragging rights for a year. That’s a big deal for us. I can bug my hunting partners now,” laughed Hallett.
On April 21, Hallett and Cote travelled to Edmonton to accept their awards.
Cote said she had fun at the event, and was excited about winning.
As a the fundraising chairman for the Beaver River Fish and Game Association (BRFG), Hallett knows the ins and outs of submitting his game for both local and provincial awards.
He encourages other locals to enter their fish and game next year, admitting there were some cases where he knew Lakelanders would have taken the title if only they had put in the leg work.
Hallett said, “There are lots of people who get the animals.”
The BRFG even gives locals a hand by submitting winners of their awards to the Alberta Fish and Game Association.
Even a lack of membership is no excuse.
In order to win at a local level, the BRFG does require someone to be a member, but provincially, no membership is necessary to take home a top prize.
“Anybody can enter that one,” Hallett said.
